Coach Godding assesses Homecoming win

Offense, defense, special teams unite to topple OPSU

Solid progress propels team towards game at Wayland Baptist

WAXAHACHIE, Texas -- Saturday’s 42-35 victory over Oklahoma Panhandle State University happened on an afternoon where hard work and a collaborative effort by both the offense and the defense produced a much needed victory.

Southwestern Assemblies of God University had labored to put together two solid halves by the offense. Until Saturday. The defense had their hands full with an OPSU no-huddle offense that had erupted in points and plays four times already.

The SAGU performance was, in the words of the late poet and novelist George Garrett, as "shining and clear as white stones in a brook."

The Lions took the action to the Aggies from the start. Three times they raised 14-point leads and at no point did the Purple Pride ever trail.

Converting 10 of 16 third plays, taking care of the ball and limiting penalties to just two five-yarders were critical to SAGU being able to maintain custody of the pigskin.

The longer the Lions roamed the gridiron the less time Panhandle State had with the ball.

Defensively the team stopped the Aggies on downs five times, forced key turnovers and curbed big plays. OPSU was able to complete just 23 of 40 passes.

Coercing long drives yielded only what the opposition earned.

Veteran Head Coach Jesse Godding commented on various facets from a second straight triumph over the NCAA Division 2 team.

JG: “One key aspect of the performance was producing three turnovers and getting three touchdowns from those turnovers.”

About the SAGU Defense

JG: “The defense did a very good job of grudgingly giving up yardage. I believe OPSU had drives of 10 plays and 16 plays on their first two TD's. Yes, they scored, but we did not give them easy points or huge chunks of yardage.”

Key Factors by the Offense

JG: “Offensively, we had some long drives which kept OPSU's offense off the field. Their offense had generated over 100 plays twice this year. We needed to control the clock, and we did!"

“We only punted three times and I am not sure if we had a three and out offensively.”

Special Teams were a Mixed Bag

JG: "Our punting game let us down for the first time this year. But we will get that fixed."

“Our kick return unit held up under the myriad of tricks they attempted to try to steal a possession. Fortunately, we were the team who was able to steal a possession on a sky kick (off) that was well executed. It didn’t produce points, but we were able to keep the ball offensively at a critical point in the game.”

Results on Homecoming

JG:“Any win is a good win, but this was great for our fans. It allowed the homecoming crowd to go home happy.”

“I felt we were very focused and played two halves of football with good intensity and energy from players and coaches.”

On Deck: Nov. 2 at Wayland Baptist

Next up for SAGU is a 362-mile road trip to the Panhandle to face Wayland Baptist University. The game is set for Saturday at 2:00pm in Plainview, Texas.

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